An agreement between the South Korean government and IOM on the
creation of a Migration Research and Training Centre in Gyeonggi
Province will be signed today at the Organization's headquarters in
Geneva.

The centre's work will support IOM's objectives of promoting
greater understanding of migrants and migration issues, of building
the capacity of States on international migration law, migrants'
rights and migration management as well as in contributing to the
development of migration policies through research and training
activities.

The centre will in the long term be a regional resource although
initially its work will focus on addressing South Korea's migration
challenges. These include tackling the integration of an estimated
170,000 female migrants from various Asian countries brought to
South Korea for marriage, according to government sources.

"IOM sees the establishment of the migration research and
training centre in South Korea as an important step forward in
addressing migration issues in a region also affected by evolving
migration dynamics in a fast-changing world. We hope the centre
will in addition play a role in defining the migration policy
agenda for the region for the coming decades," said IOM Director
General William Lacy Swing who will sign the agreement together
with the South Korean Ambassador to the UN, Lee Sung-joo.

The centre, mainly funded by South Korea, is a joint initiative
between the South Korean government and IOM, with the latter
responsible for appointing a director and supporting staff. The
centre is expected to be up and running in the coming months.

For further information, please contact:

June Lee

IOM Seoul

Tel: +82-2-6245-7647

E-mail: "mailto:jlee@iom.int">jlee@iom.int